Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Let me start off by saying that I am most definitely not a television commercial aficionado, nor an expert by any means. Nor was I a marketing major in college, so therefore I know very little about the advertising field. However there are a couple of television commercials that I really really like.

Cadillac. When I was growing up, the Cadillac was the symbol of success and power. We didn't know many people that owned a Cadillac, but I saw a few around town. When I met Ted, his dad had recently purchased a Cadillac Eldorado in a beautiful shade that reminded me of deerskin. It was gorgeous...and HUGE. I wondered how difficult it would be to parallel park that thing. There were a few times that we went places with his parents and I got to ride in the backseat and it was absolutely wonderful...the luxurious leather seats, the massive leg room, just the overall feeling of riding in a "top of the line" vehicle.

Recently a commercial has been airing featuring the actress Kate Walsh. I liked her work in "Grey's Anatomy" and also in her new show "Private Practice." In the commercial, I like how they show her driving the new Cadillac CTS in a tunnel. It's dark, but you can see the lights inside the tunnel reflecting off the car, and flashing inside the vehicle, ever so lightly. They show her in a dress, with her sleek arms and hands extended to reach the steering wheel, and they show her from several different angles. (I also happen to really like most red cars, depending on the shade of red, so it doesn't hurt that the Caddy in this particular ad happens to be red.) They also happen to film her looking away from the street, at the camera, during the most dramatic part of the ad, or at least what I consider the most dramatic part.

Kate's voice is perfect for this commercial. The first time I happened to see it on TV, I was actually thinking to myself, "This is a pretty good commercial," as she mentions the different features of the car, but in a way that makes you realize that although those things are very nice, there's something better yet to come...and in my opinion, there was.

"The real question is, when you turn your car on, does it return the favor."

I feel that the marketing people who came up with this, not only appealed to the male audience, but the female audience as well, which was a very good idea, since these days, there are more and more women who are making a LOT of money and are purchasing luxury vehicles.

Yep, I like this commercial.

Ford. The Ford Edge commercial that I really like also takes place at night. You see five young, hip people inside the car, and one girl in the backseat is looking up through the extended sun roof of the car. The soothing music is playing as she is taking in the sights of a large city. (New York City, perhaps?) They go past a cathedral and the lines of the building really stand out and she appears to be in awe of not only the church, but all that she sees as they drive past. The car appears to be moving in slow motion.

Without realizing what is going on around her, the car phone rings, and noticing that she is alone in the vehicle, she reaches into the front to press something on the touchscreen and answers. She says "hello?" with such a sweet, innocent, wondering voice, as though she can't believe where she is.

The car is parked in front of a small restaurant, and the rest of her group is waiting to go inside. One of the guys asks her if they should get her something "to go." She seems a little embarrassed at the fact that she was off in her own little world, admiring the city from the view up above.

The casting of this commercial was great. I think they got the perfect actress to play that role. I really like the commercial.

Now the big question is this...will either commercial lead me toward a dealership to look at either a new Cadillac CTS or a Ford Edge?